On Demand picks

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(Max on Comcast) Billy Crystal wheels out a chuckwagon full of lightweight fun. The plot revolves around greed (howdy, podnah - it’s a sequel), and Jack Palance is back, as the twin brother of the first movie’s Curly. Jon Lovitz is the new guy, as Crystal’s schleppy older brother - but it’s the reliable Crystal who supplies the snappy repartee and the simple warmth. (PG-13; runs through Dec. 31)

THE SUM OF ALL FEARS ★★

(Showtime on Comcast) In this adaptation from Tom Clancy’s best-selling Jack Ryan series, dour neo-fascists purchase and detonate a black-market nuclear bomb, which threatens the life of the president, kills and maims thousands, and devours a chunk of Baltimore. Then things really get scary - the fate of the world rests in Ben Affleck’s hands. Also stars Morgan Freeman, James Cromwell, and Liev Schreiber, all of whom come off better than the well-meaning but overmatched Affleck. (PG-13; runs through Jan. 3)

(Comcast Movie Collections: Holiday Movies) The real-life underdog story here is that of Sylvester Stallone, standing his ground until he could get his boxer movie made his way, starring him. It lends substance and subtext to the otherwise corny old story of the determined underclass warrior slugging his way to fame, riches, and dignity. You may think it won’t get to you, but it will. (PG; runs through Jan. 4)